multiplicity - Tuesday, January 18 2005
diggin' through boxes of old stuff/garbage in my room, trying to "clean up" but i'm prbbly making more of a mess as i go along o_O. tons of old crap; pictures, old school agendas, notes, trinkets/souvenirs, body parts...o wait, those wouldd fall under the 'souvenir' category...gadgets, old firecrackers (those really shouldn't be lying around...), etc. one odd thing (well actlly 3) i found though; old/expired driver's licenses?! i think i rmmbr having kept one of 'em in the past (why/how i did it i can't rmmbr), but 3?
...(current DL + 3 old???)
but then i figured it out, they weren't all mine. see, 1 was my old one, n the others belonged to my brothers. i have 2 identical brothers. see, there's me (Raph), the ever-so-popular raLph, and the moody rOlf. who's who?
other news: looks like plans to visit 'Loo will have to wait till March/April. prbbly gonna go to HK in feb. instead for chinese new year. just beginning to touch base w/ ppl over there so nothing solid yet, but hopefully i'll get to stay there for around 4 weeks or so. instead of just going for fun/shopping etc...i hope i'm actlly gonna be able to serve or do something more meaningful over there this time. got some family friends & relatives who say they might have a few good ministry opportunities over there...i know i'm only planning to be there for less than a month, but we'll see how it goes. i hear they've got really cold weather there for them (coldest xmas in 40 years or something like that). *whew*...that's good news for me, i don't like hot. i think i'll feel right at home then walkin around with my sandals n shorts in their "freezing" 8-10C weather, w/ all the other hongers bundled up in toques & scarves. =P
AA = annoyance & amusement - Wednesday, January 19 2005
went to the Chinese Embassy today w/ my mom to apply for my HK SAR Passport, HK ID, & a Visa just in case i decide to go to China when i visit HK next month. omg...my mom was SO paranoid/flustered/anxious/up tight about the whole process; about the forms, the information i filled out, the way i imprinted my thumb print, etc...yeesh. but she had good reason too though, man those stereotypes about the Chinese gov't being all uptight & snobby & .....#$&^*&! (basically morons). commy bastards...lol anyway, there were tons of ppl waiting around in the room (about 40) so we had to take a number: 389. they were on 340. i'd filled out the forms at home last night, so w/ nothing to do for a while i busted out a pear n just sat there; quietly munching, minding my own business. not even 2 minutes later that sorry excuse for a security guard comes up to me n says "no eating sir." huh?! O_o "o really? sorry, i didn't see a sign...?" he points at a board behind the counter he sits at w/ writing about the size of the bottom row on the eye chart @ your optometrist's office.
i give him a quick shrug of disbelief, and then, not wanting to spoil my appetite in the presence of mr. chinaman's BO, i walk out the door into the hallway to finish of my fruit. afterwards, i walk back in and out of boredom (partly out of spite too, just to annoy the heck out of mr. tightass) i walk around his counter and stand behind his chair so i can read the sign. this chinese version of mr. bean turns around and asks me what i want. "sorry, you said this is the sign that says 'no food allowed'?...yes i see, last line of rule #4 for 'Code of Conduct'...i just want to make sure there isn't anything else i'm not allowed to do in here."
after spending sufficient time standing there reading all 12 of the rules (some of them pretty ridiculous i.e. "do not damage tables & chairs in the embassy, etc...") and sufficiently annoying the shifty security guard i sat down w/ my mom and continued waiting. 369. man, it felt like forever. didn't help w/ my mom constantly bugging me too. not just her though, you walk in there and you could seriously just feel the stress/tension in the air! lol, felt like those waiting rooms for RCM Music Examinations back in the day. we got into a small argument about how she thought it was common sense for ppl not to eat in a place like this. common sense? says who? chinese ppl love to eat! and it's not like the place "looked" like it didn't allow food; it looked like a cross between an airport terminal & a school cafeteria. besides, if they're gonna make you wait hours on end for your number to be called, isn't it logical that ppl will need to snack while waiting? yeesh. lastly, so they really do have a "no food policy". put up a friggin sign for cryin' out loud! heck, i'll draw one myself and put it on the door if they complain about the gov't not having enough $$$ yaddayadda... seriously, rules are fine, but make them known & make them visible right? >=[
alright, that's enough venting. uncle (mom's lil bro) came from HK today to visit grandma, he'll be in town till sunday. went for dim sum, traded stories, caught up a bit, told him i'd finally played some "serious" tennis while i was in Waterloo. maybe i'll play when i'm in HK. o wow, look at me talking like that: "when i'm in HK..." uy...talking like i'm already going for sure. better watch out, don't wanna jinx myself. after lunch, came home & played w/ a very impatient see fut jai. we ignored her all morning cuz we were in a rush to go to the embassy (which is only open from 0900-1300). poor bobo...it's been raining like mad lately, all the snow's pretty much gone, and that meant every time we let bobo out my mom makes her put on all this "rain gear" to minimize the amount of wiping/cleaning up we have to do for the mongrel when she comes back in out of the rain. didn't matter how riled up i was this morning - one look @ bobo in all her "waterproof" glory makes all the anger go away...
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poor thing...
she looks like she's ready to head off to work or something!
speaking of bobo...i think we should cut her hair soon, & speaking of hair...i was due for a haircut too. dropped by the around 1200 to see if he (mike the barber)could squeeze me in on our way back from the embassy, dude's booked till 1700. k so i go back @ 1700 & he's still working on someone so i don't get to sit down till 1730. i don't mind the wait, he does a good job. i used to cut my own hair pretty much all the way through highschool, mainly cuz i was never good at telling the person what i wanted. i'd just be like "uh...yeah, sure, whatever...". do-it-yourself was cheaper too. anyway, after highschool's when i 1st started going to this dude cuz i got lazy, he worked @ the chinese shop my mom sometimes went to n he seemed like he knew what he was doing so i thought i'd give him a try. turns out he's the cousin of one of the older dudes i knew in highschool. cuts my hair (and washes it) for $9! i was sold. o yeah, n he's a good barber/stylist/hair-cutter-er (or whatever u call 'em) too. only thing is he works a lil slow (but then again, genius takes time right?) & he talks a lot. which is ok though i guess, he's an interesting guy; we swap stories about injuries (me: rugby, him: hockey), girls...u know, that kinda stuff.
anyway, so today i see he's been working non-stop right (booked all day till like 1830), so i ask him if he's taken a break. buddy goes:
mike: just a quick one man, i didn't wanna work all day but i just spent a lot of money, need to catch up.
me: o yeah? what'd u get?
mike: just bought some new scissors today.
me: (looking @ my own bewildered face in the mirror) scissors??
mike: yeah meng, i got 2 pair. (buddy's from vietnam, so he's got a slight accent goin on)
me: huh?! how much are scissors?!
mike: mmm...well the 2 pair i got today, add together, about $600.
me: $600?!?! (mouth stays open) wha...what the heck are they made of? titanium?
mike: haha, no meng, just like metal, stainless steel. look, i'm using one right now...
he shows me the one he's currently using to cut my hair. explains how it's better; how he can cut the same amount in 3 'snips' that it'd normally take 10 to cut w/ a crappier pair. ok...O_o then i see the catalogue, sitting open on the counter. pair of scissors on the page was listed at bloody $349!!! a pair of scissors? uy...learn something new every day. man, i started feeling bad...(maybe i should tip him a lil more this time...nah)...but yeah that's crazy. then again, he prbbly thinks i'm crazy for buying fibreglass buckets w/ removable windows to wear on my head. nyeh...to each his own.
o yeh, more "amusements" (from DC's blog):
something maybe Torontonians could relate to?
something I can relate to
just damn funny
Thursday, January 20 2005
wanted to go for a swim today...but lacked motivation. went for some pho w/ eric n andy...tried convincing me to hook up w/ their friend (our waitress): Linda. O_o damn, i better get outta here while i still can!
went downtown after; chilled/bummed around, went to visit alan @ his new job working @ some coffee joint..."tested" his customer service skills. but yeh, this can't go on for too much longer. i need to do something. i'll go swimming tomorrow. maybe...
!EDIT!
o yeah...i'd better make sure i follow through w/ this HK trip idea, just turned down a contract from BCIT that would've lasted 5 months starting next monday. =\